Mysterious Ways 'Verse
by Miss Meh
Summary: Stranger things had happened. After all, He did work in mysterious ways. Dean/Cas, Sam/Gabriel, Adam/Michael, Chuck/Becky
1. That Knowing Look

Title: That Knowing Look

Summary: The way Cas was looking at him made Dean very glad that the angel wasn't 'perched on his shoulder'. As it were, that would make it extremely difficult for them to do all of the other things he had in mind.

AN: I was trying to make Dean and Lisa's relationship into a positive thing. I hope I succeeded. Then again, if I didn't, we can always follow my beta's line of thinking and call her Cheetoh. Much thanks to Delu.

* * *

Dean and Lisa weren't sleeping together. Not anymore anyway. They had tried it for a month or two after he showed up on her doorstep, but they had never been meant for long-term, at least when it came to romance. Friendship, family, those he could do. But for some inexplicable reason, whenever Dean was with Lisa, closing his eyes for a single second, he would open them only to be disappointed that the ones looking up at him weren't blue and unblinking. Dean and Lisa couldn't sit still for hours on end, simply staring at each other, conversing without a single word being exchanged. Somehow, even though they had never "conversed" for such a period of time, Dean knew that he and Cas would have one of those relationships. One where staring at one another while wrapped in each other's arms would be almost more important than the sex.

_Oh God_, Dean thought, dragging a hand over his face. _This apple pie life has turned me into such a __**girl**_._ When did I even start thinking about frickin'_ _**Castiel**__ like that anyway?_

Dean knew actually. Well, he knew when he realized it anyway. The last time he and Lisa had been together, she had been quiet afterward, staring at him contemplatively.

"This is the last time," she told him.

Dean's brow had furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked her. He forced his face to adopt an amused look and waggled his eyebrows at her, a lecherous grin pulling at the corners of his mouth. "You know it was as good for you as it was for me, baby."

She frowned and looked away from him. "That's the problem. I don't think it is good for either of us."

Dean felt the grin slipping from his face. "Now wait just a minute—"

She looked back at him. "Dean, I didn't mean that you are bad in bed. You wouldn't be half so cocky if you were." Lisa sighed. "You have someone else. I can tell. You look into my eyes, but you aren't seeing _me_."

"You couldn't be more wrong!" Dean practically spat at her. "I'm not banging chicks anymore. Just you."

Lisa's eyes narrowed into almost a glare as she looked at him. "If you insist that you aren't 'banging chicks', fine. But, I never said you were thinking about a girl," she hissed.

Dean's face took on a look of shock—and guilt. "A—" He cleared his throat, hoping to ease the trouble he was having getting the words out. "Are you saying that I'm thinking about a dude?" Dean waited for her to deny it. She just stared at him. "No frickin' way, Lisa. I'm not gay."

Lisa pursed her lips. "From everything you've told me, angels don't have gender."

"Cas?" Dean gaped at her with false surprise. "You're crazy. He's an _angel_. I already went to Hell once; you really think I want to go back that bad?" he scoffed. "Besides, even if I did want him, he's got that fucking stick shoved so far up his ass that there would be no room for me." He plastered a half-assed grin on his face.

"Excuses, Dean," Lisa sighed. "You say his name when you sleep. Hell, you almost said his name one time while we were having sex. Don't deny it." She shook her head at him as he opened his mouth to protest. "And you won't even let me touch that scar on your shoulder."

"It isn't true," Dean said gruffly.

"Fine, well then you won't mind if I—" she trailed off as she reached over to fit her hand over the scar on Dean's shoulder. Dean stayed as still as he could to prove that he wasn't lying, but when Lisa's hand was less than an inch from his skin, the wrongness of it became unbearable, and he jerked away from her with a gasp as he released the breath he had been holding. He rolled over and refused to look at her for the rest of the night, avoiding the knowing look he knew would be in her eyes.

Maybe that was the problem, Dean mused. That knowing look. He saw it everywhere. It was in Sam's eyes when they hunted with Cas. It was in Bobby's when the angel helped them figure out some obscure reference. He would swear he saw it in the people on the street as he and Cas walked together. It was just so damn frustrating.

"—n! Dean!" The gruff voice jerked him out of his thoughts and he looked up to find his angel staring down at him with an odd look in his eyes. He tilted his head to the side and that movement, that one little gesture, made up Dean's mind.

He let out a nervous breath and stalked toward the angel. "Cas," he growled and saw the angel's eyes widen a bit. "Come here." Castiel didn't move forward, but he didn't back away either; he seemed to be rooted to the spot. Dean took it as permission.

For once, he was the one invading personal space as he ducked his head a bit to touch Cas's lips with his own. His angel didn't move, didn't breathe, as Dean leaned back slightly to see Cas's reaction. His eyes were large with shock, the black pupils almost overtaking the blue, and his tongue darted out to lick his lips. He grinned when Cas tilted his head—up this time, instead of to the side—as though requesting another kiss, and Dean decided that this was his new favorite angelic gesture.

The way Cas was looking at him made Dean very glad that the angel wasn't 'perched on his shoulder'. As it were, that would make it extremely difficult for them to do all of the other things he had in mind.


	2. The Center of It All

Title: The Center of It All

Summary: And then, Dean was kissing him again and Castiel stopped thinking entirely.

A/N: This is a sequel to my oneshot, "That Knowing Look". This one isn't as funny as the last one was, but it's also from Cas's POV so what do you expect? I think I might do more oneshots connected with these two, so I'll keep you guys posted on that. Thank you to my wonderful, magnificent, sarcastic beta, Delu.

A/N2: I had this done a week ago, but the Supernatural category wasn't working when I tried to upload it. It still isn't working so I decided to upload it as the second chapter of That Knowing Look. I originally intended to upload all of the stories in this verse, which I have now titled the Mysterious Ways 'Verse, as one shots, but I suppose I will upload them all together now. Okay, that's all I wanted to say. Enjoy.

* * *

Castiel was exhausted. Being 'Heaven's new sheriff' (as Dean had called him) was extremely taxing. As such, it had been at least a month since the last time he had seen Dean and Castiel was quite anxious to do so. He hadn't been able to acknowledge this feeling at first, but now it was as though he almost had to. He _needed_ to see Dean.

When he finally managed to find some time to get down to earth, he realized that he had failed to take into account where Dean would be and, more importantly, _who_ Dean would be with. And so, it was to his great horror that the angel found himself staring at the man's naked backside as Dean drove himself into a woman's body, her legs wrapped securely around his hips. Neither one saw him and Castiel made sure to fly away before either of them had a chance to notice his intrusion.

Castiel ended up sitting in an empty park nearly an hour later, thinking on what he had just witnessed. True, the angel had seen hundreds, perhaps thousands of humans fornicating over the course of his existence. It had never bothered him before and Castiel could think of no reason why it should bother him now.

It must be because of Dean. If it had been any other human, even ones that he knew and could call friends, such as Sam and Bobby, it would not have fazed him in the slightest. But the fact of the matter was that it hadn't been any other human. It had been Dean, and that… unsettled him.

He thought about Dean and about what Dean meant to him. Castiel found that he felt things for the human that he shouldn't have been able to feel and this confused him. As an angel, he should be immune to something so human. He remembered all of the moments he had spent with the Winchester and recalled all of the decisions he had made over the past two years. He realized with almost blinding clarity that the human had been the center of it all.

Castiel was not one to act rashly. In fact, he could count on one hand the number of times he had acted without thought to the consequences and each and every one of those actions had in some form related to Dean Winchester.

_Dean Winchester_, Castiel thought, lips twitching up into the angel's version of a smile. There weren't words that could completely describe what Dean Winchester was. He was stubborn. He was arrogant. He was rash. Dean Winchester could cover the full spectrum of the seven deadly sins in the course of a single day. He had the mouth of a sailor, and his eating habits were quite disgusting. At the same time, however, Dean's virtuous traits far outweighed his unscrupulous ones. Dean saved people. He fought to protect those that could not protect themselves.

The most important thing Castiel knew about Dean Winchester was that he was more selfless than any human the angel had ever seen. If you were lucky enough to be counted on the short list of people Dean considered family, he would give anything—even his soul—to protect you.

Castiel frowned at this thought. Was the woman counted on that list? For some reason, the idea of Dean giving up his soul for someone other than Sam or Bobby sent a hot streak of unfamiliar emotion coursing through him. Castiel recalled what he knew about the woman, the things that he had seen when he had done reconnaissance for Zachariah in the years leading up to Dean's descent into Hell. Castiel had seen it the first time Lisa Braeden had come into Dean Winchester's life and then, he had watched again years later as Dean struggled with the realization that her son, Ben, might be his. At the time, Castiel had had no reaction to the woman's brief stays in the life of his charge, but now…

Suppose this "Lisa"—he scowled to himself when he thought the name—proved to be just as good at finding trouble as most of the Winchesters' acquaintances ended up being. If she ended up getting herself killed, Castiel knew that Dean would somehow find a way to blame himself. Depending on the circumstances, the angel could see Dean even going so far as to make another deal in order to ensure that the woman's little boy didn't have to grow up without a mother like the Winchester boys had.

Castiel mentally chastised himself. Nothing like that was going to happen. Even if the man did manage to somehow find a demon to barter with, Castiel's brand on Dean Winchester's soul should prove sufficient to keep most of the unholy ones from taking the bait. If all else failed, well, the angel had pulled Dean's soul out of Hell once; there was no reason he couldn't do so again.

He felt a tap on his knee and lifted his head. A little girl was standing in front of him, a wet lollipop clutched in one sticky hand and a second, wrapped one extended toward him in the other. There was something oddly familiar about her, but Castiel couldn't put his finger on what it was. "Hello, mister. Want some candy?"

When Castiel didn't respond, her arm lowered and her bottom lip started trembling. For a moment he was unable to think of anything to say, but then he simply held out his hand and allowed the little girl to place the sweet in his palm. "Thank you," he said quietly. Seeing that she wouldn't be satisfied if he didn't at least try it, he unwrapped the lollipop and stuck it in his mouth.

She gave him an incandescent smile and hopped up onto the bench next to him. "My name's Gabrielle. Whatya doin' sitting out here looking all mopey, mister?" she asked.

He stared at her cautiously for a second. Castiel did not want to scare the child by disappearing and Dean had always told him that it was rude to simply stare at someone without speaking, so he hesitantly answered her question. "I have a friend who makes me feel unlike how I usually feel. I have been trying to figure out what it means."

Gabrielle laughed. "Well, that's an easy one, mister. You've got a crush," she told him exuberantly.

Castiel blinked in confusion and tilted his head to the side. "A crush?"

The little girl nodded. "Sure. It means you're in love," she said, drawing out the word into many syllables.

Castiel thought about this. Could it be possible? Was he 'in love' with Dean as the little girl said? He shook his head. _Angels don't love in the same sense of the word as humans do._ Castiel didn't believe that they were capable of it. But still… What if she was right? He had been human, or at least as close to human as a nearly fallen angel could get. What if some of those human emotions had carried over when he had been restored?

He heard the little girl's teeth crunch on the last of her lollipop at the same time he heard the sirens. Gabrielle hopped down off the bench and started moving away from him, her pink dress and brown ponytail blowing in the wind. She turned back to him briefly as Castiel saw the police car pull up on the street to one side of the park. The little girl winked at him, her amber eyes twinkling, and said, "See ya later, Cas." Then, with a snap of her fingers, she was gone, taking her lollipops with her.

Castiel heard an echo of laughter and leapt to his feet in the hopes of following her, but before he could, a police officer hurried up to him. "Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave." The angel stared at him blankly for a moment and then looked behind the man. Several young mothers were clutching their children and looking at him warily. Castiel didn't understand what was going on, but he needed to return to Heaven in any case. Since he had a feeling that he would be unable to catch up to Gabrielle—_Gabriel,_ he corrected himself, Castiel did not hurry as he turned and made his way around the corner—and out of eyeshot of the humans—before spreading his wings and heading back to Heaven.

* * *

When Castiel had gone to visit Dean a few months later, he had been gratified to find that Dean was no longer living with Lisa. Instead, he was camped out in another one of those run-down motel rooms that the Winchester brothers seemed to find so appealing. Although Sam wasn't around at the moment, Castiel was sure that they were together again. The evidence was spread across the table in the form of a laptop and several thick research texts that the angel knew Dean wouldn't be caught dead lugging around, let alone reading.

Castiel had been very disappointed to find that Dean seemed to be so caught up in his thoughts—_Was he thinking about Lisa?_ Castiel wondered worriedly—that he didn't even realize that the angel was even in the room. When Castiel finally managed to get the man's attention, he struggled to force his face into its usual emotionless expression and tilted his head to the side in question.

Dean seemed to come to some decision and he let out a little huff of air as he placed his hands on his knees and pushed himself up from his position on the edge of the bed. The man moved toward Castiel purposefully and drawled out, "Cas." The angel felt his body freeze in place and his breath stop in his lungs as Dean smoothly came to a halt mere inches from Castiel. Dean, the man who had complained time and again about Castiel's invasion of his own personal space was now doing the same to the angel.

When Dean leaned toward him and covered Castiel's mouth with his own, the angel didn't know what to do. This was Dean, the man that he had finally admitted—if only to himself—that he was in love with. Castiel really wanted to kiss him back, but he didn't know how. Dean pulled away and simply looked at him. The angel could see that Dean's pupils were dilated and his blood was pounding hard and fast underneath his skin. Castiel could feel his own body reacting in much the same way and it was on instinct alone that he flicked his tongue out across his bottom lip to taste the remnants of Dean that might linger there.

Castiel tried to gather his wits and think about what he was supposed to do, but his body held too much sway over his mind at that moment. His head fell back and his lips parted. And then, Dean was kissing him again and Castiel stopped thinking entirely.


	3. Highly Informative Porn

Title: Highly Informative Porn

Summary: And so, for once, Gabriel managed to keep his mouth shut and set his mind to stalking Dean so that he and Sam could just put this whole mess behind them and jump into bed already. Yeah, right.

A/N: This is the third story in the Mysterious Ways 'Verse. It is a sequel to That Knowing Look and The Center of It All. I have decided that there will be a total of seven one-shots in this 'verse. The next one will be from Sam's POV. A very big thank you to my beta, Delu.

A/N2: Oh yeah, and I'm going to be changing both the summary and pairing with each new one-shot I upload. Right now, it will be listed as Sam/Gabriel and then when I've posted all seven, I will change it back to Dean/Cas.

* * *

After all that crap with Lucifer, Gabriel had gone into hiding. He didn't want to be a part of the final fight, not personally, and so he left Sam and Dean with some highly informative porn and then went on the lam. By the time the war was over, he was really regretting that decision. Sam was being exceedingly stubborn about forgiving him for abandoning them and Gabriel was running out of ways to apologize. He finally concluded that the only way to get back in Sam's good graces was to do something for Dean. After all, Sam's last wish before his oh so graceful swan dive into the pit had been for his brother to be happy. With that thought in mind, Gabriel enthusiastically set about stalking Dean.

The angel watched as Dean fucked his way through the pain of Sam's loss and tried to convince Sam to just go see his brother. He knew that both of them would be much happier together than they were in their current state of half-living without each other. Sam was stubborn though. He insisted that Dean must be much happier with Lisa than he ever could be in a life on the road with his younger brother. Gabriel personally thought that Sam was an idiot for thinking that way, but he let it go, knowing that he was already on shaky ground and that this was one argument he wasn't going to win.

And so, for once, Gabriel managed to keep his mouth shut and set his mind to stalking Dean so that he and Sam could just put this whole mess behind them and jump into bed already. Yeah, right.

It was actually a coincidence that Gabriel was watching Dean when Castiel showed up for the first time since he flown back to Heaven a month ago. It was early afternoon and like most young parents do, Dean and Lisa were taking the opportunity while Ben was at school to engage in what Gabriel thought must be the most vanilla sex he had ever seen. _Seriously_, Gabriel mused as he watched them. _Couldn't they be a bit more creative? They're doing it in missionary for Dad's sake!_ It wasn't even hard and fast or slow and tender to make it interesting. When he snuck a look at Dean's face, Gabriel had to snicker when he noticed that even_ he_ looked bored.

Gabriel was taken by surprise when he saw Castiel show up in the middle of the room. The archangel saw the moment his little brother realized what he was seeing. Gabriel snapped his fingers just in time to freeze everything and keep Castiel from disappearing. Gabriel stood in front of the other angel, analyzing Castiel's facial expression for a moment before he placed it. When he did, he could've slapped himself for not realizing it sooner.

His little bro was _in love_ with Dean. Not that Gabriel could blame him. After all, those Winchesters were damn near irresistible. _Oh, Castiel,_ he thought, clapping his hands together with glee as he circled his brother's motionless form. _You're in for a rollercoaster ride with that clueless bastard._ He paused, once more facing Castiel, his fingers almost coming together to snap again when he noticed something else in his brother's eyes. Pain, betrayal, grief.

For all that Gabriel had enjoyed tossing Castiel around during the Winchester's little sojourn in TV Land, he didn't want to see his brother hurt. Not really. The injuries he had inflicted on Castiel back then had all been flesh wounds. If Dean hurt Castiel, it would affect his grace, and wounds to an angel's grace took lifetimes to heal. Gabriel would never want his little brother to have to go through that.

Determined—and with a new purpose to add to his original one—Gabriel snapped his fingers and time started flowing again. Castiel was gone almost before he could blink and without another thought, the archangel left Dean to his lackluster sex life and followed his brother's grace to a nearby park.

As he watched Castiel brood, Gabriel had to wonder why he hadn't seen it before. Gabriel was, after all, the spirit of truth. He should have been able to see the truth of this. In his defense, the only time he had actually seen Dean and Castiel together, they had been in the middle of the apocalypse and Gabriel had been trapped in a ring of holy fire. His little brother's love life had been the last thing on his mind. He had been too busy trying to convince the Wonder Brothers to slip into their roles—something that he now regretted, considering that these days the only archangel he wanted getting inside of Sam Winchester already had a vessel, and quite the handsome one at that, if he did say so himself.

Gabriel was shaken from his thoughts by the sounds of laughing children making their way onto the playground with their mothers. He realized that he had been sitting there watching his brother for over an hour and still Castiel had made no progress in figuring out his feelings. Gabriel sighed and decided to go help him out. But what form to take… He couldn't go up to Castiel looking like himself. The angel would either disappear without letting him get a word in or attempt to take him into custody. Neither option seemed conducive to getting Dean and Castiel's heads out of their asses. After a bit of thought, he finally snapped his fingers and changed into a little girl. _There,_ he thought. _That looks innocent enough._ Then, he paused and conjured up two lollipops. _Perfect!_

Unwrapping one of the lollipops and popping it into his mouth, Gabriel walked up to Castiel and tapped him on the knee. When his brother lifted his head, the archangel extended the other lollipop toward him. "Hello, mister," Gabriel said. "Want some candy?"

Castiel looked at him suspiciously for a moment and didn't respond. Seeing that a little extra force would be needed, Gabriel allowed his bottom lip to start trembling as the arm offering the candy lowered. As though sensing tears were imminent, Castiel quickly held out his hand and took the lollipop. _Heh, I wasn't known as the Trickster for nothing, _Gabriel thought smugly as Castiel thanked him. Then Gabriel fixed the other angel with an expectant stare until Castiel gave in and started eating the candy. Once Castiel had tentatively placed the lollipop in his mouth, Gabriel smiled widely and climbed up onto the bench.

"My name's Gabrielle. Whatya doin' sitting out here looking all mopey, mister?"

Castiel stared at Gabriel for a second, but he didn't seem to be suspicious anymore. Gabriel snorted internally. The archangel didn't have to be a mind reader to know that Castiel was contemplating simply disappearing to avoid answering the question. Gabriel considered blocking his brother's ability to do so, but that would be a dead giveaway. _Drat,_ he cursed. _I might need to come up with another strategy._ Luckily for Gabriel though, Castiel had apparently decided to stay.

"I have a friend who makes me feel unlike how I usually feel. I have been trying to figure out what it means," Castiel replied.

Gabriel rolled his eyes. That had to be the most straightforward, simple definition of love he had ever heard. Was his brother really that oblivious?

The archangel forced himself to laugh and get back into character. "Well, that's an easy one, mister. You've got a crush." He said this as happily as he possibly could in an attempt not to let his exasperation show. Gabriel didn't think he did a very good job of it, but Castiel apparently bought it.

His brother gave him a confused look and tilted his head. "A crush?" And of course, Castiel didn't even know what a crush was.

Gabriel suppressed a sigh and nodded. "Sure. It means you're in love," he told Castiel, making sure to lengthen the syllables in the word 'love' as most children would.

He added in a giggle for effect and surreptitiously watched his brother's face. Castiel seemed to be coming to some conclusion and Gabriel took a quick peek into his mind to make sure he had come to the right one. When he had confirmed that Castiel had finally gotten a clue, Gabriel crunched down on the last of his lollipop and hopped down off the bench. He had to hold back another giggle when he heard the sirens and noticed a ring of wary mothers and babysitters staring at them. Oh this was priceless. They thought his baby brother was a pervert. As the police car pulled up, Gabriel turned back to Castiel and winked at him. "See ya later, Cas." Then he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

* * *

It was a few days later when he finally saw Sam again to tell him about what he had done. Gabriel knew that Sam had been on a hunt and despite his reputation as an annoying bastard, he didn't want to bother Sam while he was working. So instead he waited until Sam was finished and was doing his laundry. Then, he popped up, six inches from Sam's face, sitting on top of the dryer the man was currently stuffing full of darks.

Sam jumped. "Christ, Gabriel! Could you stop doing that?"

Gabriel shrugged. "If you haven't noticed, it's in the nature of certain angels to try and get as close as possible to their chosen Winchester. You just happen to be mine." He grinned. "Speaking of which, your brother…"

"Gabriel!" Sam snapped, cutting him off. "We've talked about this. Dean's happy with Lisa. He doesn't need me back in his life messing it up."

"Well, about that," Gabriel said. "You see, I've been watching Dean lately and he's not as happy as you think he is. I showed up while he and Lisa were having sex the other day and…" Gabriel whistled. "Boy, did he look bored. And then, who should show up but our own little Castiel. I'll tell you…" He pulled out a candy bar and took a bite between words. "…I don't really know what he sees in him, but my brother is totally in love with yours." He grinned widely at Sam. "So, you see, I nudged Castiel in the right direction. Once they get together, Castiel will be happy, Dean will be happy, you'll be happy, and then, you'll all be so happy that you'll forgive me for not helping out with the apocalypse. Sounds like a good plan, right?"

Sam stared at Gabriel for a moment before shaking his head. "Gabriel, that's not the reason I'm mad at you."

Gabriel's smile faltered. "It's—It's not?" he asked uncertainly. "If that's not… Then why?"

Sam rolled his eyes and huffed. "Gabriel, you didn't _just _leave us in the middle of the apocalypse. You left us _thinking you were dead_ in the middle of the apocalypse." Sam shook his head again. "You let me think that you were _dead_, Gabriel. And now, you show back up and I'm supposed to be able to think that you actually cared all along."

"Now wait just one minute, Sammy boy," Gabriel said defensively. "You guys didn't give a shit about me. I don't believe for a moment that you missed me when I died."

Sam looked sheepish. "Well, I did." He refused to meet Gabriel's eyes as he mumbled under his breath, "Don't know why. Freakin' Trickster… Killed Dean, gave me herpes, and god damn it, the porn."

"Oh, c'mon now," Gabriel protested as though Sam had actually been talking to him. "I was only trying to help you get past the pain of Dean's loss."

Sam raised an eyebrow. "And the herpes?"

Gabriel gave him a wide smile, unembarrassed. "It was funny. You know it was. Hell, if it had been Dean you would have been laughing your ass off."

"Okay, fine. What about the porn?" Sam crossed his arms and glared at Gabriel.

"You mean that little masterpiece I gave you guys telling you about the rings?" Gabriel smirked. "It was rather ingenious wasn't it?"

"That's not the part of it I was talking about. I watched the whole movie, Gabriel." A blush colored Sam's cheeks and Gabriel instantly knew what he meant.

"I—I didn't think either of you would watch past the first few minutes," Gabriel said. If he wasn't an all-powerful archangel-slash-Trickster, Gabriel might almost think that he were nervous. _Nah, it can't be._

"Dean didn't, but I thought you were enough of a dick that you might put something at the end of the movie, just so that we would have to watch you get it on with some girl." Sam's cheeks turned an even darker shade of red. "So, I was watching it and halfway through the movie the girl you were sexing up turns into me." Gabriel gulped. Before Sam said it out loud, Gabriel had been able to pretend that he and Sam might not be talking about the same thing. _So much for that._ "And somehow," Sam continued. "That just made your death so much worse, because in that porno you weren't just fucking me. I could see it in your eyes."

Gabriel could feel Sam's eyes on him and felt just as trapped as he had in that ring of holy fire all those months ago. "Sam, I…" He trailed off, not sure where to start. Gabriel thought for a moment and then, resolved, looked Sam in the eye. "I really thought I was going to die, okay? It was just luck that Lucifer didn't get me. By that point, I had already given you that porno and to be honest, I didn't expect to ever see you again because even if I had survived, you probably wouldn't." His fingers tightened into fists on top of the dryer. "You didn't," he corrected. "So anyway, I thought that the DVD I gave you was my last chance to tell you how I felt."

Sam was quiet for a moment and though Gabriel's gaze was settled firmly on the ceiling, he could feel that Sam was staring at him. Suddenly, his head was jerked down and Sam's lips were pressed to his. Gabriel's eyes widened for a moment—_Was this really happening?—_before drifting closed. Sam licked the seam of his lips and Gabriel opened his mouth without hesitation. He wrapped his arms tightly around the man's broad shoulders and was happy to feel Sam's arms slip around his waist.

Gabriel wasn't paying attention to anything outside of the sensation of Sam pressed against him until the manager of the laundromat yelled at them. Gabriel wasn't aware of what the woman was saying and he didn't much care. He simply snapped his fingers and took them somewhere else.

* * *

Sam and Dean ended up getting back together again a few weeks later when they met on a hunt. Turns out, Dean had left Lisa because she didn't make him happy. Gabriel knew it was only a matter of time before Dean and Castiel met up again and started their epic gay romance and he tried not to be too smug when talking to Sam about it. After all, while he _could _conjure up another porno starring him and Sam, no illusion was a substitute for the real thing.


	4. A Muted Movie Without Subtitles

Title: A Muted Movie Without Subtitles

Summary: For the first time, Sam realized that each time he had thought he misread uncertainty, nervousness, and self-doubt on Gabriel's face, he had been wrong. He hadn't misread anything at all.

A/N: Hello, everyone! Sorry it took me so long to update, but between the writer's block, finishing I Am No Angel, and real life, I just haven't had the time. But now, my ability to write has come back in full force. This is the fifth fic I've uploaded in the last month. XD That makes me so happy.

Anyways, this is the fourth story in the Mysterious Ways 'Verse. It is a sequel to That Knowing Look, The Center of It All, and Highly Informative Porn.

A great many thanks to my wuss of a beta, Delu. Kudos to her for getting her first tattoo, even if she did scream like a little girl while it was being done. :P

* * *

Sam was tired of everything and, though he would never admit it—especially to Dean—he was feeling bitchy. His last hunt had gone straight to hell from the start, Dean was still off living his apple pie life, and Sam didn't have a clue what was going on with Gabriel. All in all, his life was probably going worse now than it ever had before—well, with the exception of the four months Dean had been in hell. Even back when he had been drinking demon blood, he had still had Dean standing by his side. Sam really hadn't ever realized just how much of a difference Dean's presence made.

And Gabriel…

Sam was completely confused by the archangel. Ever since he had watched that porno Gabriel had made for them, he had found himself thinking about things that he had _never_ thought of before. Like how it would feel to have the angel's lips on his own, or whether he was actually bendy enough to…

Sam shook his head and bent over to move his laundry from the washer to the dryer. It was stupid to think about any of this. Gabriel was never going to talk to him about that stupid porno, so there was no point really. Now if only Sam could stop thinking about it.

Determined to forget about it once and for all, he tugged his soggy clothes out of the washer, in a hurry to get it done so that he could lose himself—and hopefully all thoughts of Gabriel—in the very complicated Latin exorcism he was attempting to memorize. Unfortunately for Sam, the aforementioned archangel decided to choose that moment to appear in front of him, sitting on top of the very same dryer he was currently stuffing clothes into.

A small part of Sam couldn't help but think about the fact that his head was almost in Gabriel's lap and about what would happen if he leaned forward just a bit and…

The thought alone made Sam jump away from the angel and yelp, "Christ, Gabriel! Could you stop doing that?" His heart was pounding fast and hard in his chest and it wasn't just because of the 'scare' Gabriel had given him.

Gabriel shrugged and gave him a coy look. "If you haven't noticed, it's in the nature of certain angels to try and get as close as possible to their chosen Winchester. You just happen to be mine." Gabriel grinned and Sam's breath caught in his throat. What did Gabriel _mean_ by that? "Speaking of which, your brother…"

"Gabriel!" Sam interrupted, pissed. "We've talked about this." He swallowed harshly, but continued, his tone bitter. "Dean's happy with Lisa. He doesn't need me back in his life messing it up."

"Well, about that," Gabriel said, cutting off Sam's pity party before he could even start it. "You see, I've been watching Dean lately and he's not as happy as you think he is. I showed up while he and Lisa were having sex the other day and…" Gabriel whistled in that overly dramatic way he had and leaned in closer to Sam as though imparting a secret. Sam really hoped that the angel didn't somehow know that his heart had just sped up in his chest. "Boy, did he look bored. And then, who should show up but our own little Castiel. I'll tell you…" The angel pulled a candy bar from his pocket and shoved half of it into his mouth. "…I don't really know what he sees in him, but my brother is totally in love with yours." He swallowed the chunk of chocolate and grinned again. "So, you see, I nudged Castiel in the right direction. Once they get together, Castiel will be happy, Dean will be happy, you'll be happy, and then, you'll all be so happy that you'll forgive me for not helping out with the apocalypse. Sounds like a good plan, right?" Gabriel looked at him eagerly with what Sam _must_ have mistaken as hope in his eyes.

Sam was too stunned to answer him for a moment. Had Gabriel been trying to make amends for skipping out on the _apocalypse_? Had they _really_ been misunderstanding each other the whole time? Sam shook his head. "Gabriel, that's not the reason I'm mad at you."

If it hadn't been _Gabriel_ Sam was talking to, he would have sworn that the angel's expression turned vulnerable. "It's—It's not?" Sam could have sworn he just heard Gabriel's voice quiver with uncertainty. He shook his head once again, trying to clear it. His ears must be playing tricks on him. "If that's not… Then why?"

Sam rolled his eyes. For an angel, Gabriel sure was dense. "Gabriel," he said, trying (and failing) to inject a layer of calm into his voice that he _definitely_ didn't feel. "You didn't _just_ leave us in the middle of the apocalypse. You left us _thinking you were dead_ in the middle of the apocalypse." He was growing more upset as he spoke and his control over the emotion was slipping. "You let me think you were _dead,_ Gabriel. And now you show back up and I'm supposed to be able to think that you actually cared all along."

Now that he said it out loud, Sam realized just how much Gabriel's death had affected him. He might have been able to live in denial and hide it from Dean—he had gotten _very_ good at doing both over the years—but emotions so strong were bound to find their way into the open eventually.

"Now wait just one minute, Sammy boy," Gabriel protested. "You guys didn't give a shit about me. I don't believe for a moment that you missed me when I died."

Sam was even more confused now. Gabriel did have a point. He hadn't thought he cared about the angel at all. Well, at least not before… Hell, he didn't even understand his own feelings, so how was he supposed to make Gabriel understand them? "Well, I did," he said stubbornly, not meeting Gabriel's eyes. God damn it, he was completely out of his depth here. "Don't know why," he muttered to himself. "Freakin' Trickster… Killed Dean, gave me herpes, and god damn it, the porn."

"Oh, c'mon now," Gabriel interrupted his rambling. "I was only trying to help you get past the pain of Dean's loss."

Sam couldn't help raising an incredulous brow at that one. "And the herpes?"

Gabriel gave him a wide, guileless smile and Sam felt like his heart was literally stopping in his chest. God, he was in trouble. He was sure it had been a while since he had reacted that way to another person and unfortunately, he was beginning to realize just what that reaction meant.

"It was funny," Gabriel insisted. "You know it was. Hell, if it had been Dean, you would have been laughing your ass off."

Sam could admit to himself that he probably would have been, but like hell was he going to admit that to Gabriel. "Okay, fine. What about the porn?" Sam folded his arms across his chest and sent Gabriel a heated glare.

Gabriel just smirked at him. "You mean that little masterpiece I gave you guys telling you about the rings? It was rather ingenious wasn't it?"

Sam huffed, "That's not the part I was talking about." Sam felt his cheeks heat. He wasn't sure he really wanted to talk about this, but in the end, something made him press forward. "I watched the whole movie, Gabriel," he admitted.

Sam was watching Gabriel's face and knew the moment the angel understood just what he meant. For the first time, Sam realized that each time he had thought he misread uncertainty, nervousness, and self-doubt on Gabriel's face, he had been wrong.

He hadn't misread anything at all.

"I—I didn't think either of you would watch past the first few minutes," Gabriel stuttered.

_Holy shit,_ Sam thought. _Gabriel __**actually**__ stuttered._

"Dean didn't," Sam assured him. "But I thought you were enough of a dick that you might put something at the end of the movie, just so that we would have to watch you get it on with some girl." Sam remembered what had _actually_ happened in the video and felt his face turn an even darker shade of red than it had been before. "So, I was watching it and halfway through the movie, the girl you were sexing up turns into me." Sam finally looked up to meet Gabriel's eyes, but the archangel's eyes were fixed firmly on the ground. "And somehow, that just made your death so much worse, because in that porno, you weren't just fucking me. I could see it in your eyes."

And that was the clincher wasn't it? Sam now realized that Gabriel had real feelings for him _beyond_ pure lust, and he was becoming aware of the fact that he just might feel the same.

"Sam, I…" Sam leaned forward eagerly in anticipation, but Gabriel seemed to be unsure of what he wanted to say. Suddenly, he looked up and their eyes met. "I really thought I was going to die, okay?" A shudder passed through Sam at the thought. "It was just luck that Lucifer didn't get me." Gabriel shrugged. "By that point, I had already given you that porno and to be honest, I didn't expect to ever see you again because even if I had survived, you probably wouldn't." Gabriel paused and his eyes were haunted as he corrected himself, "You didn't."

Sam's breath caught at the sorrow in the angel's voice. He had always been under the impression that Dean—maybe Bobby too, but yeah, mostly just Dean—would be the _only one_ who would miss him. He shouldn't have been surprised that the thought of Gabriel actually caring… Well, it made his insides turn to mush.

"So, anyway, I thought that the DVD I gave you was my last chance to tell you how I felt," Gabriel finished.

Sam stared at Gabriel. The angel had just basically told him that he loved him. How was it possible that a heavenly being, an archangel, _the _Gabriel no less, could be in love with Sam Winchester, demon spawn? Was there any possible way he could ever deserve that love?

Sam put his focus back on Gabriel and decided that none of it mattered right now. They could talk about reasons later. For once electing not to over-analyze the situation, Sam pulled the angel's head toward his own and pressed their lips together.

* * *

A lot could happen in three months, Sam thought as he and Gabriel curled around each other in post-orgasmic bliss.

Three months ago, Sam had been alone. Three months ago, he had been exhausted and just tired of life in general. Three months ago, he had been angry at God for dragging him out of hell for more of the same.

Now, he had Gabriel, which incidentally also meant that he was getting sex regularly. Sam had been deliriously happy.

Unfortunately, Dean had decided to start hunting again and since the evil of the world seemed to have crawled into a hole to lick its wounds, Sam had ended up running into him a few weeks after he and Gabriel had gotten together. After Sam had performed all of the requisite tests and proved that, no, he really _wasn't_ Lucifer, Dean had first gotten pissed that Sam hadn't told him he was back. When he finally got over that, he immediately wanted to go right back to the same old routine, which regrettably included sharing a room.

Gabriel nixed that idea quickly enough and set about flagrantly displaying their relationship until Dean, who really was _dense_ when it came to these things, realized that Sam and Gabriel were actually _in a relationship_. Unfortunately for Sam, Dean had completely freaked out—"_Gabriel?_ You're having sex with the fucking _Trickster_?"—and forbid him to see Gabriel again. Then _Sam_ had gotten pissed and everything had escalated. They had made up eventually, but it had still taken Castiel (after he had reappeared, that is) to calm Dean down and get him to see reason.

Before Sam had known what hit him, Castiel was coming with them on hunts and Dean was doing his 'I got laid' happy dance almost every day. It kinda grossed Sam out, to be honest, but as long as Dean wasn't giving him shit for his relationship with Gabriel anymore, Sam was happy to let his brother inform the world about Cas and how great he was with his tongue.

Well, he was getting used to it, at any rate.

On this particular day, Dean and Cas had gone out so that Dean could spend some time "putting a bit more human into Cas" which Sam knew was code for date night followed by a round or two of sex. Gabriel had decided to take advantage of their brothers' absence so that they could do pretty much the exact same thing. At the moment, both of them were spiraling into unconsciousness—Gabriel liked to slip into some kind of meditative state so that he could "put the energy back in my Energizers, 'cause you _know_ I keep going and going…"—and they were just about to go over the edge when…

Sam sighed and rolled over, grabbing for his cell phone. "It'd better not be Dean," he mumbled. A moment later, he groaned as his hand hit the phone, causing it to go skittering across the floor. Gabriel didn't move from where he had face-planted into his pillow. He simply lifted one hand, snapped his fingers, and the phone was in Sam's hand, still blaring out the annoying ring tone Sam knew he must have been crazy to choose in the first place.

Sam glanced down at the display and did a double take. He hurriedly flipped open the phone. "Hey, Chuck," he said uncertainly and somewhat warily as he remembered that one of the last times he and Dean had heard from the Prophet, the guy's girlfriend had sent a fake SOS from that stupid Supernatural convention.

"Hey, Sam, how's it –uh—how's it going?" Chuck replied. Sam didn't answer for a moment. "Um, Sam?"

Sam started. "Oh, uh, yeah, it's fine. Everything's… really great actually," he said in a rush. "Listen, Chuck, we haven't heard from you since the Apocalypse—well, you know. Why're you calling now?" _Please,_ Sam prayed. _Please, don't say this has something to do with another Apocalypse. We didn't survive the first one._

Chuck mumbled indistinctly and then told Sam, "It's not, um, life-threatening or anything like that. I just, uh, found something you guys might want to take a look at."

Sam sighed and looked over at Gabriel. The archangel nodded, looking at Sam with an uncharacteristically serious expression. "Yeah, we'll be there as soon as we can. I need to find Dean."

He was about to hang up when Chuck's voice came through the phone again. "Sam, wait," he shouted. "Bring—uh—bring Cas and Gabriel with you. They'll, um, want to see this too." Then, he hung up, leaving Sam staring at his phone.

Sam looked up at Gabriel, who looked just as confused as he felt, before turning his attention back to his phone and dialing Dean. When his brother finally picked up, he was obviously less than pleased at the interruption. "Fuck off, I'm in the middle of something."

Sam exhaled and tried to ignore the thumping noises in the background. Had Dean _seriously_ just answered the phone while he and Cas were having sex? "Yeah, whatever, dude, just get back here as soon as you can. Chuck just called."

Sam heard Dean curse and the thumping noise abruptly ceased in the background. There seemed to be a struggle and then a minute later, a breathless Castiel was rumbling into the phone, "Sam, the Prophet has called you?" Sam opened his mouth to reply, but the angel didn't wait for an answer. "If that is the case, then we need to go to him now. Dean and I will be there in no more than five minutes." Seconds later, Sam was once again hearing the dial tone as the person he was conversing with hung up on him.

Sam usually had no problem with Dean and his angel. They didn't have overly passionate public displays of affection and they didn't trade mushy words while getting lost in each others' eyes… Actually, that might be the problem, Sam thought. They didn't have to _say_ _anything_ to each other. They just stared at each other and to everyone else it was like watching a muted movie without subtitles. It was easy enough to see that something was being communicated, but it was impossible to decipher exactly what that something was.

When Dean and Cas stared at each other, it made almost everyone in the immediate vicinity uncomfortable—even Gabriel, and he considered himself a sex god. It was like watching… well, let's just say, the term 'eyesex' was used for a reason. Sam always felt as though he were intruding by even looking at them when they were engaged in this… activity.

Strangely enough, the only person who did not feel any such awkwardness was Becky. No, the first time Becky had been around for one of these moments, she had gone closer, despite Chuck's attempts at pulling her away. In fact, she had gotten so close – less than half a foot away – that she had completely disrupted the moment between Dean and Cas before clasping her hands together as though in prayer and proclaiming, "I told him you guys would be good together."

"Becky, how many times do I have to tell you? I have no influence over their lives," Chuck had interjected in exasperation. "I just write down what I see in my visions."

Becky hadn't seemed to care. In fact, she had sidled closer to them as though she thought that if she got close enough, she could become a part of them. It was extremely disturbing.

Unfortunately for all of them, she had started doing the exact same thing the minute they showed up at Chuck's house. And then she had seen Sam and Gabriel. Just when Sam thought she couldn't get any creepier…

"So, Chuck," Sam said as all five men tried to ignore Becky, who was currently standing behind Sam and Gabriel, and making obscenely suggestive eyebrow movements. "What seems to be the problem?"

Chuck stuttered and tried to pull Becky back to his side. Chuck wasn't exactly the strongest of men though, and Becky seemed to have superhuman strength when she went into slash mode, so eventually he gave up. "It's, uh, not really a problem," he corrected. "I just, uh… Let me get them."

The Prophet hurried out of the room. He was back a minute later, but he wasn't alone. Two men entered the room behind him and the brothers recognized one of them.

"Adam," Sam and Dean both gasped.

"What the fuck?" Dean said.

"Sam, Dean," Adam greeted them. Sam was surprised by the lack of anger in the younger man's voice. The last time the three of them had been together, things had been very different.

He was brought out of his thoughts a moment later by Gabriel's surprised gasp as both of the angels moved to put themselves in front of their Winchester. Sam was confused. It was just Adam. Why would Gabriel and Cas feel the need to protect them from _Adam_?

Sam remembered that Adam hadn't been alone when the other man stepped forward to meet them. "Brothers," he said, his voice cool.

_Wait a minute_, Sam thought. _This guy's an angel?_ Usually, he was pretty good at being able to sense whether someone was from heaven or earth. Angels just had this holier-than-thou thing that most of them couldn't seem to suppress. Sam may love Gabriel, but the archangel had one of _the biggest_ superiority complexes he had ever seen. Cas had gotten better after spending so much time with Dean, but even he still had his moments.

The guy in front of them wasn't exhibiting any of the usual signs of the heavenly host. Who _was_ he?

Sam froze in horror when Gabriel finally answered that question. It was a name he had feared, a name he had loved, a name he had hated, even if he knew that the fear, the love, the hatred weren't his own.

"Michael."

* * *

A/N: Okay, I'm pretty sure the next part is going to be Adam's POV, but I might change my mind. I'll get it done as soon as I can. It definitely won't be another seven months before I update. XD


	5. It Almost Hurt To Look

Title: It Almost Hurt To Look

Summary: Adam was really going to have to have a talk with Michael about PDA. More specifically about the fact that they were not allowed, _especially _when they were standing in the house of a Prophet and his disturbed girlfriend while his brothers looked on in amusement.

A/N: And now, we finally get to the Adam/Michael portion of the fic. This part turned out to be _way, WAY_ longer than I had anticipated. And I also realized that each subsequent chapter gets longer by almost a thousand words and then BAM! This one almost doubled the last. The way I look at it is this: Dean and Cas are practically canon, so I didn't need to spend a lot of time pushing them together. Sam and Gabriel are a bit harder to see than Dean and Cas, but it's still not too far a stretch to get them together because Gabriel does whatever the fuck he wants to do. Adam and Michael though, they are very difficult to get right (mostly because we don't see much of them in canon), so I needed to put a bit more effort (and 3000 extra words) into it.

Plus, it seems like this story has gone and developed some sort of plot outside of the original fluffy plotline. It's only barely visible if you squint, but it is there. How in the world did that happen? :P

A very big thank you to my betas, Delu and Sacatuzdank. You guys are the best.

Anyway, now that I'm done expanding on things that probably don't need to be expanded on, here's the next oneshot in the Mysterious Ways 'Verse. I hope you guys enjoy it. XD

* * *

"Ngh," Adam groaned. Damn it, he had a headache. Must've been some night last night. He tried to remember what the fuck he had been doing, but that just made his head hurt _more_.

Adam squeezed his eyes shut and rolled over, burying himself unquestioningly into the warmth at his side. He sighed. Shit, he was more comfortable now than he had been in…

_Fuck!_ His eyes snapped open. He had been in Hell. That douchebag Zachariah had tricked him into being Michael's vessel by promising him that he would see his mother—the asshole had never actually delivered on _that_ promise—and then, the next thing Adam knew he was down in the fucking pit.

He didn't even know what had happened in between. As it turned out, archangels took up a shit ton of space and there had barely been room for his soul at all, let alone enough for him to actually be conscious inside of his (their) head. He supposed he should be thankful for that, for the fact that he didn't remember what he had done while he was Michael, but it would have been kinda nice to know just how he had ended up in fucking Hell.

Suddenly, the memories of _that place_ hit him. Adam clenched his eyes shut once more and was unable to keep himself from shuddering. _Hell_. He had been to _Hell_ and he fucking _remembered_ it. He remembered everything. A whimper escaped his throat and a distant part of his mind knew that he would feel embarrassed about that later. At the moment, however, it was impossible for Adam to feel anything but the overwhelming panic and terror that was currently coursing through him.

_He was __**burning**__. The fire was consuming him, a never-ending agony. He was sure that he would prefer non-existence to this. He was slipping away. His soul was in tatters. There was nothing left for him. There was nothing left __**of **__him. He was drifting into oblivion. And Michael…_

"Adam!" a voice broke through, jerking him out of his waking nightmare. Adam gasped and writhed, struggling against the arms around him.

Then the voice spoke again, and though he had never heard it before, he recognized it. "Calm yourself, Adam," Michael commanded him. "Open your eyes."

Adam resisted for a moment, but then he sighed and opened his eyes to look up at Michael. The archangel appeared… different from how Adam had last seen him. He was human, or at least occupying a vessel. It was strange to say the least.

While Adam knew that Michael had briefly used him as a vessel, he had never actually seen the angel when he was walking around in Adam's skin. The first time Adam had "seen" Michael, he had been a fucking voice inside of Adam's head, and then when he had eventually come to again down in Hell—Adam had to keep himself from falling back into the memories through sheer force of will—Michael had been in his true form. He had been fucking huge and so bright that it almost hurt to look at him.

Now, he was… Well, he was human. Michael was looking down at him with blue eyes that were surprisingly soft, considering the power Adam knew was behind them. His brown hair, so dark it was almost black, fell over his forehead, just short enough so that it didn't obscure his eyes. A straight nose and full lips, which under other circumstances may have served to make Michael effeminate, combined with a strong jaw to instead give Michael a rugged look. A remote part of Adam catalogued these features, but the bulk of his thoughts had frozen when those blue eyes caught his.

A human might have whispered words of comfort, meaningless platitudes that did little good to either one of them. But Michael was an angel, and angels didn't do human comfort. Adam barely kept himself from jerking in surprise as Michael tightened his arms around him. Adam lay there stiffly for a moment. This was really fucking awkward.

Then Adam realized that he was the one making it awkward. Michael was an angel—he had to keep reminding himself of that fact since he really didn't look like a fucking angel—and had no concept of what would discomfit a human. For some reason, this thought relaxed him again and he allowed himself to sink into Michael's embrace. By his figuring, there was no one else around to see his moment of weakness and, hell, Michael had seen him at his very worst; Adam knew that Michael wouldn't judge him and that was the only reason he let himself accept the comfort the angel offered.

And if he nuzzled his head into the curve where Michael's neck met his shoulder, Adam knew damn well that neither one of them was going to mention it.

* * *

The next few months were spent pretty much aimlessly. Michael's Spidey senses seemed to be broken, so he had no idea how they had gotten out of Hell, let alone why. Unfortunately, Michael also had no fucking clue how to be human. The archangel may have taken his share of vessels over the years, but, from what Adam had gathered, Michael hadn't been down to Earth for anything other than heavenly missions since his first visit amongst humans not long after their creation. He was majorly out of touch with, well, _everything_.

They still hadn't left the hotel room they had first woken up in. Neither one of them had any idea what they were supposed to be doing and, though Adam had tried to convince Michael that they should at least get jobs and find an apartment like normal people, the archangel had been adamant that they stay where they were. He insisted that God was the one who had raised them and he had put them there for a reason.

Adam didn't know if he believed in that religious crap, but Michael was real enough and something _had_ gotten them out of Hell. If that hadn't been proof enough, Adam and Michael had had a fucking shitload of lucky breaks lately.

The first thing he had noticed was that they were never billed for the room they were staying in. Adam had gone down to the front counter to ask about it, only to be told that the room was paid for the next year and was there anything else they could do to help him today? His default reaction should have been to tell them to shove it—nineteen or so years of everything being "Me and Mom against the world" had made it difficult to accept any help, especially when he had no fucking clue where it was coming from—but then he had realized that it wasn't as though they had anywhere else to go, let alone the funds to actually do so. Adam had forced himself to suck it up and just go back up to their room.

Thinking about funds had caused him to attempt to access his bank account—he wasn't expecting success—which led to him to yet another convenient discovery. His bank account was still operational. This had truly stumped Adam. He had been dead for well over a year, maybe longer (time was fucking hard to keep track of in the afterlife) and his bank account was still working? It just didn't make sense. Then he had seen the balance and realized that there were a few extra zeros on the end that weren't supposed to be there.

Michael had assured him that both the hotel and his bank account must be God's work. This had only served to make Adam more upset. What possible reason could _God_ have for getting them topside and settling them into a hotel room with a shit ton of readily accessible cash? I just didn't make any sense.

Though it went against his nature, Adam had, at Michael's urging, eventually stopped worrying about it and started enjoying not _having_ to worry about everything. It was only once he had taken a break from stressing out about each and every little thing that could go wrong that Adam realized that something else had crept up on him while he was becoming complacent.

Things had changed between Adam and Michael in the months that they had been topside. Now that he looked back on it, especially since it seemed as though the blinders had finally been lifted from his eyes, Adam recognized that things had probably started changing when they had been down in Hell, and he just hadn't noticed it. Michael had spent a shit ton of time protecting him from Lucifer, and demons, and who-the-hell-knows what else was down in the pit. Adam didn't know why the archangel had done it—he had always been under the impression that angels were total dicks that didn't give a shit about the humans they trampled over to get their way—but it had an impact on him.

And now, months (or years, depending on how you looked at it) later, Adam had finally come to the realization that he was in love with a fucking archangel. Just fucking _perfect_.

Adam studied Michael from where he was laying on top of their bedspread. The angel was sitting at the table using the laptop computer Adam had picked up for them months ago—he had finally gotten over the debilitating laughing fits that used to plague him whenever he thought about **his** the almighty archangel lowering himself to using such a human invention. The look of confused concentration on Michael's face was oddly endearing.

Adam sighed and tried to school his expression into something that didn't scream "I'm a god damned fool who's in love with _**the Michael**_, fucking angel of the fucking Lord." Then, he picked himself up off of the bed and made his way over to Michael.

"I know that look," Adam said as he threw himself into the chair across from Michael. "What the hell is confusing you this time?"

"I have finally recalled the name of a Prophet that may enable us to figure out how we were liberated from the Cage." The crease between Michael's brows deepened as he frowned. "The problem I am encountering now is finding him. How am I supposed to locate someone when the only information I possess is his name?"

A thrill of excitement shot through Adam even as he rolled his eyes at Michael's inability to utilize a website as simple as the White Pages. Adam and Michael had been holed up in this hotel room since they had woken up after being pulled from Hell. It was encouraging to know that they could now go see someone who might possibly be able to tell them why they had been saved and what they should be doing now that they were back among the living.

Adam grabbed the computer from beneath Michael's fingertips, ignoring the glare Michael shot his way, and pulled it toward him. He typed in the web address for the online phonebook's homepage and then looked at Michael as it loaded. "What's the guy's name?"

Michael looked at him as though Adam had taken away his favorite toy, but he was still an angel, and he wasn't petty enough to not answer. "Charles Shurley," he replied.

Adam entered the name into the search bar and pressed enter. "Okay, we have…" He looked at the screen. "…four possible matches." Adam clicked on the first one and then made a face. "Uh, Charles L. Shurley from Texas is dead—has been for almost thirteen _years_, for fuck's sake—so he can't be the one." He scrolled down a bit on the page and sighed. "I guess we're going to have to call the rest of them. God, that's going to be such a pain in the ass." Adam ignored the frown Michael sent his way. He had already been lectured several times about how he "should not take our Lord's name in vain", and he knew that neither one of them was going to be changing their position on the matter any time soon. Fifteen or so years of a bad habit made it way too much fucking effort to break. "I mean, what are we going to say to them? 'Hello, this is Adam and Michael—you know, the archangel—and we just got back from Hell. You wouldn't happen to be a Prophet, would you?'" Adam made sure to layer his voice with extra sarcasm just to make sure he got his point across.

Michael looked at him calmly as he replied. "No, we shall ask for Charles Shurley, and then we will ask him if he knows of the Winchester brothers." He nodded to himself. "The Charles Shurley we are looking for will most definitely have heard of your brothers."

Adam grumbled a bit, but didn't comment as he picked up his newly acquired cell phone and dialed the first number.

Twenty minutes and three phone calls later—it was just his luck that he would leave the right number for last—Adam was hanging up the phone with the Prophet Chuck, who had sounded much more uncertain of himself (and perhaps _drunker_) than he had imagined a Prophet would sound. The man had given Adam his address, but requested that they not bother him until after noon the next day.

Though Michael had been unable to recall the Prophet's name until that day, he was still fully powered in all other aspects and his ability to move from place to place in the blink of an eye was still intact. Unfortunately for Adam, that meant he and Michael would have to wait almost another twenty-four hours to get the answers they were looking for.

Adam paced the room, unsure what he was supposed to do now. Usually, he would turn on the television or read one of the books that they had picked up in the time they had been staying there, but at that moment, he had too much pent up energy to do something so sedentary. So that left Adam with one option, which regrettably involved him pacing around this room for the next twenty-four hours.

_Fuck that_, Adam thought savagely. He couldn't take another minute of sitting around in a room that seemed to get smaller and smaller every time he looked at Michael, especially since he could feel the angel's eyes on him. He was going to get out of there, and he was going to do it now.

"I'll be back later," Adam grunted. Then, before Michael could say anything about it, he rushed out the door, slamming it behind him with enough force to make it clear that he didn't want to be followed. It might have been a bit childish, but he didn't really give a fuck at that moment.

Adam crossed his arms as the wind ruffled through his hair a few minutes later when he stepped out of the hotel's lobby and onto the street. _Fuck,_ he cursed. _I forgot my jacket._ Like hell was he going back up to get it, though. He could do without.

_Where to now?_ he wondered, then shrugged, deciding it didn't matter. He hurried off into the city, letting his feet go in whichever direction they chose.

* * *

Six hours later (and a few hours past dark), Adam was finally able to find his way back to the hotel. God, he'd been such a fucking idiot. They'd been there for months now, and he still managed to get himself lost. And then, if that hadn't been bad enough, it had started raining about an hour ago. He was tired, and he was wet, and he was cold, and all he wanted was to be back in his snug little hotel room with Michael.

Adam shivered and sniffled as he unlocked the door to their room and pushed it open with shaky hands. Fuck, he was going to get a cold; he could feel it. That was just what he needed. Back from Hell without a purpose, in love with an archangel, and now a fucking cold? He knew it wasn't the worst thing he had ever been through, but at the moment, he was feeling wet and miserable and couldn't bring himself to care that he was being overly dramatic.

Michael grabbed him by the arms the minute he walked through the door, his face the very picture of anger and worry. "Adam, where have you been?" Michael demanded. "You have been gone for hours, and I was unable to find you." He finally noticed that the fabric beneath his hands was soaked. "Why are you wet?"

Adam shook Michael's hands off and crossed his arms, unable to suppress another shiver at the reminder. "I got lost," he answered Michael's first question. "And then, it started raining." He attempted to straighten himself up and regain a bit of his dignity, but then he sneezed, ruining the effect.

"You are sick?" Michael looked at him worriedly.

"No shit!" Adam snapped. "Tends to happen when weak, little humans spend too much time being cold and wet. If you hadn't noticed, I am both cold _and_ wet right now, so excuse me for being human and getting sick." Adam wasn't sure exactly why he was getting so defensive. All he knew was that he was once again feeling the need to escape. He turned around and started off toward the bathroom.

Before he could get there, Michael grasped his wrist and turned him around, laying one hand on Adam's forehead. After a moment, when nothing happened, Michael frowned. "I am unable to heal you," he murmured. "There is something wrong…"

Adam tried to pull away again, but Michael wasn't having it. Before he knew what had hit him, Michael had begun removing Adam's clothes. He couldn't prevent the hitch in his voice as he nearly yelled, "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

Michael had been leaning down to divest him of his pants and when he responded, he merely looked up at Adam through his lashes to meet his eyes. "I am removing your clothing. I may not be well versed on current human matters, but I do know a great deal about their physiology. We must get you warm, and the best and quickest way to do that is by stripping you of these clothes and sharing body heat." He tilted his head. "I have seen many humans do it; are you unaware of this human practice?"

Adam's face turned red, and he tried to keep certain parts of his anatomy from reacting when Michael talked about stripping and sharing body heat. God, this was so not good. He had left the room to keep something like this from happening and here it was, happening anyway.

He knew it the moment Michael realized what was going on. Michael didn't gasp or do anything to otherwise indicate that he knew Adam was turned on, but the silence in the room spoke volumes. Adam blushed, if possible, an even more violent shade of red and refused to meet Michael's eyes. He heard Michael get to his feet and then the angel's hands were on his face, turning it so that they could see one another.

"Adam," Michael said calmly. "Although I am not human, I am aware of what this reaction means. You are either attracted to this form…" Michael gestured at the body he was wearing. "…or you are attracted to me." Adam saw Michael's eyes soften as he took in the fear on the human's face. "I have been inside of you, Adam; I know your thoughts, your fears, your love. You have never lusted after a man before." Michael's lips twitched at the corners. Adam was astonished. That was almost a fucking smile! "As a result, the only conclusion I can draw is that you are attracted to me and not to my body." And that line did elicit a smile from the angel. As Adam looked a bit closer, he realized that it wasn't really a smile; it was a smirk, and to Adam's bemused horror, it was a smug one.

Adam froze. Michael _knew_. Michael knew how he felt, and now he was going to disappear. After all, he was an angel of the Lord, and while Adam wasn't completely sure what their stance was on gay relationships, he was pretty sure that it probably wasn't a positive one. He had never been to a church that did not proclaim homosexuality to be a sin. While he himself had never had a problem with it, Adam was sure that Michael would not see it the same way. What the fuck was he supposed to do now?

Unable to take the tension anymore and figuring that he had nothing to lose anyway, Adam tilted his head up and pressed his lips against Michael's. He wasn't prepared for Michael's reaction.

Michael _dominated_ him. Taking control of the kiss, the angel pushed Adam back until he was pressed against the wall. For the first time since they had been raised from Hell, Adam stopped worrying about who had done it and what they were supposed to be doing, instead throwing himself into the kiss. His lips parted, and Michael took advantage, his tongue sneaking through to press against Adam's. The human moaned in appreciation and ran his hands up Michael's shoulders so that he could wrap his arms tightly around the angel's neck.

Michael pulled away from Adam and leaned down to whisper in his ear. "You are mine," he asserted possessively, his voice nearly a growl. Adam didn't respond. He couldn't quite bring himself to start professing his love. That was way too fucking sappy for him at the moment, and he was pretty sure that Michael could read him like a book anyway. Odds were, he already knew. So instead, he merely tightened his arms around Michael and held him closer.

They stayed like that for several minutes. Adam never wanted it to end. Unfortunately, his body felt the need to remind him that he was still only partially clothed in pants that were fucking soaked. Shivers wracked his frame and his teeth started chattering.

A moment later, Michael had Adam completely naked on the bed and wrapped up in blankets like a fucking soft shell taco. Adam opened his mouth to protest, but he ended up sneezing instead, so he decided that maybe it was better this way. Michael crawled into the bed next to him and pulled Adam's blanket cocoon toward him so that he could hold him and keep him warm through the night.

Adam sighed and sniffled, burrowing himself into Michael's embrace. _I could get used to this_, he thought drowsily as his eyes closed and he started drifting toward sleep.

Before he was totally gone, Adam thought he felt Michael press a kiss to his forehead. Adam fell asleep thinking that he was completely happy for the first time in a long time.

* * *

Adam and Michael arrived at Chuck's house the next day at noon on the dot. Trust Michael to be worried about being fucking punctual.

Chuck was shorter than he had imagined. And more jumpy. The guy hadn't asked who they were when Adam had talked to him on the phone yesterday. Adam was under the impression that Chuck had been very drunk when they had spoken, and at the time hadn't cared about much of anything.

The look on Chuck's face when they appeared in his living room was priceless. Apparently, the Prophet did not even remember speaking to Adam and so their appearance was coming as something of a shock to him.

Chuck gaped at them, his mouth opening and closing as though he couldn't figure out what he wanted to say. He finally stuttered, "You must be, uh, Michael and, uh, Adam?"

Adam was about to tell him that, yes, they were Michael and Adam, and that they really, _really _wanted to know what the fuck was going on. However, before he could, someone gasped behind him.

"Oh. My. God."

Adam and Michael turned and saw a girl. She looked like she was around Adam's age, maybe a bit older, but the thing that really caught Adam's attention was the exceedingly creepy smile on her face. Adam didn't consider himself to be a person who scared easily, what with being kidnapped by angels and then sent to Hell, but he was seriously frightened by the way the girl was looking at he and Michael.

Chuck sighed and moved to stand next to the girl. "Michael, Adam, this is my, um, girlfriend, Becky." The girl squeaked and Adam wasn't sure whether it was because of them or because someone had actually referred to her as their girlfriend. "Becky is a big fan of, um, angels."

"And Winchesters," Becky added. "I love angels _and_ Winchesters. Together." She clasped her hands and looked at them dreamily.

Adam wasn't sure how he was supposed to react to that. Chuck took the decision out of his hands by clapping a hand over Becky's mouth and drawing her toward him. "Actually, I, uh, need to go make a call to the, um, Winchesters now that you mention it." He backed away from them, dragging Becky with him. "Becky and I will, um, go do that. Just, uh, stay here. Have a seat."

Michael stood there for a moment before complying and settling himself on the couch. He looked at the human questioningly, and sighing, Adam sank down next to him. Adam tried to discreetly check Michael's reaction to what was happening, and if he hadn't spent the last several earth months, not to mention their countless years in Hell, with the angel, he wouldn't have even been able to tell that he was reacting at all. Since he _had_ spent so much time with Michael, Adam could see the nearly imperceptible throbbing of the vein at his temple. Though Adam didn't consider himself to be an expert at reading Michael's emotions, he was fairly confident that the angel was _annoyed_. That was pretty much how Adam was feeling too, so he considered it a safe bet.

Feeling a bit daring, Adam reached over and brushed the fingers of his right hand over Michael's left, hoping that it would calm him down. Apparently not understanding what Adam had been trying to do, Michael turned his hand over and wove their fingers together. Adam thought about snatching his hand back and saying something to reassert his masculinity, but then he decided to just relax and enjoy it. So, he settled back into the couch and allowed them to wait hand in hand.

* * *

When the Prophet led them into the next room to see his brothers, Adam wasn't sure what to expect. Adam had started to let go of his anger at Sam and Dean while he was down in Hell. Seeing what Sam went through because he had no one to protect him from Lucifer had softened him a bit. When he was once again on Earth, certain events combined with way too much fucking free time—spent mulling over everything that had happened, unfortunately—to wash away the last of his resentment. It was actually a shock, even to Adam, that he no longer hated them, and surprisingly enough, he felt lighter without the weight of that hatred.

Even though this was true for him, he knew that it might not be the same for them. Adam was worried that they might hate him for giving in to Michael and causing Sam to end up trapped in the Cage with Lucifer. He really hoped that they didn't see it that way. Sam and Dean were the only living family he had left, and now that he had let go of that fucking grudge, he wouldn't mind the chance to get to know them.

Adam didn't even notice that there were two other men (and the ever-present Becky, of course) in the room when they walked in. All of his attention was focused on his brothers. Both of them gasped as he entered and said, "Adam." He was relieved to note that they didn't sound upset or in any way hostile toward him; they were just surprised. Even Dean's shocked, "What the fuck?" showed no hint of anger or displeasure at the revelation that their little brother was alive.

"Sam, Dean," he replied, not sure exactly how he was supposed to get the ball rolling on all of the fucking caring and sharing that would most likely have to happen before they could get started on the whole "being brothers" thing.

Suddenly, the two guys he had barely noticed before stepped in front of Sam and Dean, clearly doing what they could to obscure his brothers from view. They weren't doing a very good job of it considering the fact that they were both shorter than the Winchesters and the one in front of Sam was doing a _particularly _bad job, as the one he was defending had at least six inches on him. It would have been laughable to Adam if the men hadn't been giving off an aura of… well, Adam wasn't exactly sure how to describe it. It was a mix of protectiveness, possessiveness, and mistrust all rolled into one.

He didn't realize that they weren't reacting to him until Michael stepped forward. "Brothers."

"Michael," they replied coldly.

Well, that made fucking perfect sense. These guys were angels—actually, he thought he recognized the second one as the one who had brought him to Sam and Dean after that douchebag, Zachariah, had resurrected him—and, the fact that they were with Adam's brothers probably meant that they had been among those trying to help the Winchesters _stop_ the Apocalypse. That probably meant that they weren't too fond of Michael right now, considering Michael had been the biggest fucking proponent of the fucking Apocalypse.

Adam sighed. There went his hopes of forming brotherly bonds, or whatever. Michael was his… well, he wasn't completely sure _what_ Michael was, but Adam knew that he loved him. That would _probably_ throw a wrench in any plans he had to get to know Sam and Dean. God damn it.

And that was when Sam started freaking the fuck out.

Adam wasn't sure what happened. One minute they were all standing there silently, and the next, Sam was yelling at Michael, ranting about betrayal and throwing in profanity with every other word.

Everything happened so fast. What seemed like a second later, he and Dean were dragging Sam in one direction, and the angels were pulling Michael away in the other. When Adam and Dean had finally wrestled Sam into another room, they both examined their brother for any sign of the insanity that had taken over him before. He seemed to have calmed down a bit and _didn't_ look as though he was likely to rush out of the room and attempt to verbally attack Michael again, so Adam and Dean tentatively released their hold on him.

"What the fuck was that?" Dean practically yelled.

Sam stuttered and looked unsure of himself. "I just… I don't know what came over me. I was just feeling afraid and hurt and angry and… _betrayed._" He looked pained. "I couldn't control it."

"Sam, that was _Michael_, the fucking archangel! Even if he is an angel dick, you can't just attack him." Dean shook his head. "Do you _want _him to smite you?"

Adam bristled at the insult to his… Michael. "Michael wouldn't smite him, Dean." Though it wasn't completely true all of the time, he felt compelled to say, "And he's not a dick."

Sam stared at him strangely for a moment, but Dean snorted. "Of course he's a dick. He's a fucking angel; they're all dicks, 'cept Cas."

Adam ignored Dean, instead watching Sam, who looked as though he had just come to a realization. "Oh my god," Sam yelped. "You're _with_ Michael, aren't you?"

Adam blushed. _Fuck my life,_ he thought. This was _not_ how he had wanted Sam and Dean to find out about he and Michael. "Well, I… We…" he faltered, unsure what to say.

Dean looked gobsmacked. "So that's why you're so much happier to see us this time," he blurted out. "Everyone's happier when they're getting some." Dean looked as though he regretted saying it the minute it was out of his mouth, and both of his brothers pulled a face at his lack of tact.

"No, well, yes, we are together, I guess, but I'm not _getting any_ and that has nothing—well, okay, maybe a little—to do with why I don't hate you guys like I did the last time I saw you," Adam rambled.

He was very glad when Michael walked into the room and interrupted them. "I believe I know what caused Sam to react in such a manner." Michael was looking at Adam, but his words were directed at the room in general, and after a moment, the archangel moved his gaze over to the Winchester in question. "Usually, when an angel takes a vessel, he will construct a barrier between himself and the soul of the human whose body he is utilizing. This is done so that there will be no mixing between the human soul and the angel's grace. Lucifer did not do this. Not only did he not have any intention of ever relinquishing his hold on your body once he had you, he also _wanted_ you to be aware of what was going on around you." Michael's expression turned sad. "He has always had sadistic tendencies." Then he continued on with his explanation. "This is the only reason you were able to take control and throw the four of us into the Cage. Lucifer's arrogance was once again his downfall. Unfortunately for you, as a result of this lack of control on Lucifer's part, you are now suffering from emotional transference. You are responding to me as Lucifer would were he here."

Sam looked horrified at the thought that any part of Lucifer could still be with him. Adam watched as he began to work himself into a panic. Before it could turn into full blown hysterics, the shorter angel was pulling Sam into his arms and murmuring into the man's ear. Adam couldn't hear what the angel was saying, but whatever it was, it seemed to reassure Sam. Adam's brother seemed to melt into the arms that were holding him, going so far as to lean down so that he could rest his forehead on the angel's shoulder.

Okay, Adam definitely hadn't seen that one coming. He really had no room to judge though, he reminded himself, glancing over at Michael.

Michael moved over behind Adam and pulled him back into his arms. Fuck, Adam was really going to have to have a talk with the angel about PDA. More specifically about the fact that they were not allowed, _especially _when they were standing in the house of a fucking Prophet and his fucking disturbed girlfriend—said girlfriend was standing at the entrance to the room making obscenely creepy cooing noises as she watched them—while his brothers looked on in amusement.

When they got to the point where they were comfortable enough to tease each other, Adam knew that he would never live this down.

And then Dean totally ruined the moment Adam wouldn't admit was happening by saying, "How the fuck did that happen? How did you guys even manage to end up friends, let alone…"

And once again, Dean's utter lack of tact reared its ugly head. Adam turned his head away from his brother. It was none of his damn business and Adam wasn't going to grace him with an answer.

Unfortunately, Michael hadn't gotten the memo. Adam groaned, knowing it would only add fuel to the fire, as he heard Michael say, "I took him to see his mother."

Neither of his brothers said anything more about it after that, and Adam was surprised to see a look of commiseration on their faces as they each thumped him on the back. Then he remembered that they had lost their mother, too, and much earlier than he had lost his own. Maybe they had more in common than a father who was never there.

He looked over at Michael, who seemed to have made temporary peace with his brothers, though Adam had absolutely no idea how that was possible. He saw hope in Michael's eyes, and that, in turn, made him feel optimistic.

Adam was alive, and he had Michael, and someday, he _would_ have his brothers' trust. And really, as a guy who had been through Heaven and Hell, that was already more than he could have asked for.

* * *

A/N: All right, only two more one-shots to go! I'm pretty sure you guys can figure out which POV is coming up next.

Oh, and I know I haven't really been asking, but if you read, please leave me a review to tell me if you liked it or even give suggestions. It would make me very, very happy if you do.


	6. The Integrity of His Grace

Title: The Integrity of His Grace

Summary: His Father obviously expected Michael to stay with the human, and so that was what he was going to do. This idea had been reinforced when he had awoken on Earth with Adam sleeping in his arms.

A/N: Oh my god, it's been eleven months. I have not updated the fic in almost a year. I am so ashamed of myself. This fic has been sitting unfinished on my computer since March. I truly apologize to all of my readers who have stuck with me for this long. I swear that it will not take me another year to post the final chapter. I already have a good portion of it written, and I hope to have it posted in the next two weeks, but if that is impossible, I promise to have it finished by the end of the year. Thank you so much for bearing with me. :)

Thank you to my beta, Delu, who had to completely restructure portions of this fic because I made the mistake of trying to write at three in the morning.

* * *

Michael was old. He was the first of the angels. He had been there to see, and occasionally assist, in the creation of each of his fellow angels. He had been there to see the creation of the cosmos, the galaxies, the planets, and eventually, the organisms that resided upon them. He had been there when God created His masterpiece—His humans.

Unlike many of his brothers and sisters, Michael had never harbored any ill will toward the humans for being his Father's favorite creations. It was God's will that the humans be held in high esteem, and he had never considered it his place to question the will of his Father.

As he had been the first of them, he was also the first of the angels to take a vessel. While it had never been attempted before, Michael had been confident. These humans were composed of flesh and blood; they were simple creatures. In his arrogance, he had been sure that he would not fail in this first attempt to share one of these bodies with the soul inside of it. In this, he had been wrong.

Michael had been unprepared for the overwhelming magnitude of the human emotions that had been attempting to merge with his very essence. In an effort to escape the unfamiliar sensations, Michael had exploded out of his vessel, protecting the integrity of his grace, but killing the unfortunate human in the process. He would forever regret the consequences of his instinctual reaction to this perceived encroachment upon his grace.

God had forgiven Michael for the tragedy caused by his first attempt to take a vessel. Michael, on the other hand, had never forgiven himself.

His Father had known—in the way that only God could—just what Michael needed. He had enacted rules governing the use and treatment of vessels. Many of his brothers and sisters had forgotten or chosen to ignore these directives after their Father had departed Heaven, but Michael never had. Vessels were to be honored, cherished, protected. Barriers were to be created to ensure the separation of the human's soul and the angel's grace so that Michael's mistake would never be repeated again. It was an angel's duty to care for and respect their vessel, and this was a duty that Michael did not take lightly. He refused to cause another human death as a result of his own carelessness.

Michael had lived up to this vow for thousands of human years, and he had never been tempted to break it.

Then he had taken Adam Milligan as his vessel.

There hadn't been a problem while they had been on Earth. Adam's body had not been the perfect vessel for him—that honor went to his older brother, Dean—so there had not been a great amount of space available. As a result, the boy had been kept unconscious and out of his way.

Everything had been fine, or at least as close to fine as things could be considering the circumstances. Michael was not _happy_ about the fact that he would have to kill his brother, Lucifer, but events were unfolding as God had willed them to. The archangel had been preparing himself for that day since his brother had fallen from grace. This was not something that could be changed. Killing Lucifer was his duty, and Michael _always_ abided by his duty.

Then the Winchester brothers had changed everything by opening the pit.

Michael had been to Hell before, but he had never been _in Hell_ before. As they fell, he had been ripped from Adam's body before both he and the boy had been locked in the Cage with Lucifer and his vessel, Sam.

Lucifer may have been considered his brother at one time—a part of Michael insisted that they still _were_ brothers—but that had been a long time ago. Michael barely even recognized the other angel any more, and the shadows that marred what had once been his grace were even more hideous to behold when they were no longer shielded behind a vessel. Lucifer's grace was so twisted, so dark, that there were only traces remaining of the archangel who had once been described as the Light Bringer.

Things had been different down in Hell. He and Adam had no longer been merged, but Michael had still considered it his duty to protect the human from Lucifer's sadistic tendencies. The boy's soul had been fragile, breakable, and Michael had been unable to sit back and watch when his brother had turned his sights on Adam. Though Michael and Sam Winchester had been much better equipped to deal with Lucifer's attentions, Adam _hadn't_ been. The other Winchester was, to Michael's eyes, softer and unused to the battles fought between Heaven and Hell. So Michael had taken the boy under his wing and made sure that Lucifer wouldn't be able to touch him.

Adam would be safe.

* * *

Time flowed at an almost imperceptible rate in Hell. Michael was even more conscious of this than the humans were as, in Heaven, time went by much, much quicker than it did on earth. Of course, as he was little more than a celestial beam of light while he was there, he moved much faster as well, but this did not mean that he did not notice the passage of time. And as he was so aware of the dredge of passing time down in Hell, the archangel knew that he, Adam, and Sam Winchester were pulled from the Cage not long after he began to defend his vessel from Lucifer's manipulations and tortures.

As there was only one being with enough power to pull three beings from Hell without releasing Lucifer and restore said beings to their former condition, Michael knew that God must have been the one to do so. He did not believe that it was coincidence that this event occurred _after_ he had begun to act as Adam's protector. His Father obviously expected Michael to stay with the human, and so that was what he was going to do.

This idea had been reinforced when he had awoken on Earth with Adam sleeping in his arms. He had looked down at the human and known that this had been what his Father had intended. He and Adam were destined for something, though Michael wasn't sure just what that something was yet.

When Adam woke, Michael comforted him, as at that moment, the human seemed to be as breakable as he had been in Hell. The archangel was unused to dealing with emotional humans, and so he fell back on what he knew from the millennia he had observed them. He had noticed that physical contact seemed to mean a great deal to humans, and so he gently put his arms around Adam and left them there until the human relaxed in his grip.

Soon after, the human calmed down enough for them to get off of the bed and assess the situation. To be more accurate, Adam overanalyzed their situation, while Michael quietly insisted that God was responsible for their resurrection. As he was not one of humanity's more pious members, Adam wasn't quite as sure of this as Michael was, but after the first month, he stopped grumbling about it, so the archangel was satisfied.

Once they became accustomed to living together, Michael began to notice other things about Adam, things that he had not known even when they were sharing the same skin.

Adam wasn't as fragile as a glimpse of his soul had led Michael to believe. The human was many things, but—as Michael had come to learn—fragile was not one of them. Adam was also not one to put up with what he termed "vague angelic bullshit". Adam had realized the Michael was not telling him something the first time the archangel had sensed one of his brothers in the vicinity. Though the brother in question was in no way connected to them or their situation, the human had demanded to be kept informed of anything and everything Michael became aware of.

As Michael found out, Adam was surprisingly good at reading him. Though Michael was much less expressive than a human, he did have emotions. The archangel was slightly unnerved by the revelation that not only did Adam know that he had emotions, but in some cases, he responded to them as though Michael had clearly told him what he was feeling.

Michael was not as good at reading Adam's emotions. It took the archangel nearly a month and a half to discover that whenever the human stared out the window—his eyes looking but not really seeing, filled with an emotion Michael couldn't name—that he was missing his mother. Michael had known that Adam had been raised by his mother—had known that Adam had only assented to become his vessel for her sake—but he had not realized that the promise Zachariah had made had gone unfulfilled.

It wasn't until he asked Adam what he was looking at when he stared out the window that he found out the truth. The human had turned to him and given him a searching look before replying cryptically, "Sometimes I think I see her, but she's never there."

It took Michael several moments before he finally understood. The only "she" Adam could be referring to was his mother. "Do you miss her?"

Adam gave him a scathing look. "What kind of question is that?" he scoffed. "Of course, I miss her. I would miss her even if we hadn't died the way we did and even if your buddy Zachariah had kept his fucking promise. She's my mother. I'll always miss her."

"I know what that is like," Michael empathized quietly. "My Father has been missing for millennia, and I miss him just as you do your mother." An idea occurred to him, a way to make Adam happy. Michael took a moment to put his thoughts in order before making his offer. "I could take you to see her if you would like. I am still able to enter Heaven, and it would not be entirely impossible for me to bring you with me." He did not mention that it was not strictly within the rules to bring living humans into Heaven. Adam did not need to know that.

The human stared at him for just a little bit too long—enough so that Michael felt an inkling of self-doubt creep into him—before saying softly, "You would do that? For me?"

Michael could only nod, feeling a strange constriction in his chest when he saw the look on Adam's face. There was joy there. Joy and hope and love—all of the things angels had originally been intended to inspire—shone in Adam's eyes.

"Can we go now?" Adam asked eagerly.

Michael didn't answer. He simply extended one hand to touch his fingers to Adam's forehead.

* * *

Adam changed after seeing his mother.

His attitude toward Michael had grown perceptibly warmer in the weeks following their trip to Heaven. Michael didn't know if it was because he was simply happy or if it was because he had discovered that the archangel had had no part in Zachariah's deception, but he was glad for the change.

Michael also noticed that his own feelings towards the young man were somewhat unclear. He felt a strong sense of longing and sadness during the rare occasions on which he and Adam were separated. Occasionally, he would look at the human and the area around his heart would suddenly heat up, though when he placed his hand on his chest, he could feel no difference.

It wasn't until the night before they were to meet the Prophet that Michael finally discovered what the feelings meant. After Adam had left the hotel room, the archangel had found himself pacing anxiously while waiting for his return. He had tried using his angelic powers to find his former vessel, but something was interfering and nothing he had tried was working. And so he paced, growing more and more upset and angry as time went by.

It wasn't until the human finally dragged himself back through the door, soaking wet and sniffling, that Michael allowed himself to truly breathe once more.

He grabbed Adam by the arms, wanting to shake the human for making him worry. "Adam, where have you been?" Michael asked, his voice angry. "You have been gone for hours, and I was unable to find you." Water dripped from between his fingers as he squeezed Adam's arms, and for the first time he noticed that the human was soaked to the bone. "Why are you wet?"

Adam shook him off angrily and crossed his arms, shivering. "I got lost. And then, it started raining."

Michael stepped forward in worry as the human sneezed. "You are sick?" What did one do with a sick human? It had been many, many years since he had even seen one and he had never taken care of one. He attempted to recall how he had seen other humans do it in the past.

"No shit!" his human yelled. "Tends to happen when weak, little humans spend too much time being cold and wet. If you hadn't noticed, I am both cold _and _wet right now, so excuse me for being human and getting sick." Adam stepped back, seeming to take a defensive stance against him. Michael didn't know why, but he didn't like it; he didn't like it _at all_.

Adam started to turn around, but Michael grabbed his wrist before he could turn completely. He laid one hand on Adam's forehead, trying to project his own healing energy out so that he could cure the human's illness.

Nothing happened.

Michael's forehead creased in perplexity. "I am unable to heal you," he said quietly. "There is something wrong…"

Adam tugged against his hold, obviously intending to enter the bathroom and leave Michael to his worrying out in the main room. Michael didn't let go, finally remembering the best course of action for humans to take when they needed to retain body heat.

The archangel set about matter-of-factly removing Adam's clothes, something to which it appeared the human did not take too kindly. "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

One of these days, Michael was going to have to talk to Adam about his use of profanity, but now was not the time. He leaned down to remove Adam's pants as he responded, looking up at the human from his crouched position. "I am removing your clothing. I may not be well versed on current human matters, but I do know a great deal about their physiology. We must get you warm, and the best and quickest way to do that is by stripping you of these clothes and sharing body heat." He looked at Adam questioningly. "I have seen many humans do it; are you unaware of this human practice?"

The human blushed a shade of red that was most becoming, Michael noticed. The archangel wondered at this reaction. Why would this be something to be embarrassed about? It was a matter of survival.

Then he saw the erection that was growing toward him, practically begging him to take notice. Michael stood, staring curiously at Adam's reddening face. His mind went through every possible reason that would elicit such a response. The human body had a wide variety of reactions to stimuli, and yet, there were very few that could cause this. In Adam's case, there were only two, of that Michael was sure.

It was lust or love.

On the one hand, Adam could just be attracted to his body. Michael had examined the body in a mirror, and it was quite aesthetically pleasing. Then again, Michael had been inside of Adam, and while the human had had his share of lustful thoughts, he had never had sex with someone he was not at least romantically attached to.

So if it wasn't lust, then it must be…

_Oh,_ Michael thought, understanding finally dawning on him. _That is what it is, this feeling I have been unable to name._

It was love. Of course, Michael knew what it was. He was an archangel; he was made of love. Even so, in all of the years of his existence, he had not once experienced this kind of love, and so he had not recognized it for what it was.

Adam was _his_. He was his vessel, his human, his mate. And if the current situation was any indication, Adam returned his feelings. Michael knew what he needed to do.

Michael rose to his feet and grasped Adam's vibrantly red face gently between his hands, turning it so that he could meet the human's eyes.

"Adam," he started, projecting more calm than he felt. "Although I am not human, I am aware of what this reaction means. You are either attracted to this form…" Michael waved one hand at the body he was wearing, almost positive that it was not the sole reason for Adam's condition. "…or you are attracted to me." Adam's eyes shone with fear, and Michael immediately hastened to reassure him. "I have been inside of you, Adam; I know your thoughts, your fears, your love. You have never lusted after a man before." A small smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Adam was in love with him; he had to be. That thought gave him the courage to continue. "As a result, the only conclusion I can draw is that you are attracted to me and not to my body." Michael's smile grew wider when he saw the truth of his words reflected in Adam's eyes. He had been right, and now Adam would be _his._

The human just stared at him for several long seconds, the fear still evident on his face. Michael's grin began to fade. Had he not said the right thing? Why did his words not alleviate Adam's fears?

Before he could say anything to fix his mistake, Adam leaned forward and kissed him.

Neither of them was prepared for Michael's reaction as he took complete control of both the kiss and Adam's body. He pushed Adam back against the wall, parting the human's lips and pressing his advantage, letting his tongue pass through to press against his partner's. He felt more than heard Adam moan as the young man's hands moved up over Michael's shoulders to wrap around his neck.

Michael had never known that anything could feel so good. Kissing was not really an activity that angels were supposed to partake of, though they would not be kicked out of Heaven for doing so. It was a taboo without actually being a taboo. Frowned upon, but not punishable.

The archangel knew that kissing would not be enough. Not with Adam.

Michael wanted all of his human. He wanted him, body and soul. He wanted everything, and he was going to make sure that Adam knew it.

He pulled away from the kiss momentarily to growl in Adam's ear, "You are mine."

Adam didn't respond, but Michael knew. The human pulled him even closer, so close that the archangel was sure not even a single atom could fit between them, and Michael knew.

That night they fell asleep wrapped in each other's arms.

* * *

The next day, Michael met Adam's brothers again—for the first time under favorable circumstances—and was reunited with his own brothers.

To say that Michael was surprised that both Gabriel and Castiel had also found mates from the Winchester family was an understatement. Less surprising was the fact that both of his brothers were extremely protective of their mates and immediately stepped in front of their humans upon seeing him. Though it saddened him to see the mistrust in their eyes, considering what they had all been through, it was an understandable reaction, one that he himself might have gone through had he been in the same position.

Then Sam Winchester started yelling, causing Dean and Adam to drag him out of the room and Michael to be left alone with his brothers.

It was… Well, it was kind of awkward, if truth be told. He and Gabriel had had a fight before the other archangel had disappeared, something Michael had always regretted, especially since they had never been sure whether or not he was dead or simply missing. As for Castiel, well, Michael had spent barely any time with this particular brother, and most of what he knew of him had been learned after the angel had defected to join the Winchesters. He didn't have particularly good foundations for a relationship with either of them.

When he looked up, Gabriel was glaring at him. "Michael!" he snapped. "What the hell did you do to Sam?"

Michael was not surprised to find that Gabriel blamed him. "I did nothing," he asserted. "Lucifer did. He did not erect the barrier to prevent the mingling of his grace with Sam's soul." His shoulders became slightly slumped. "It appears as though our brother still hates me. In the interest of not causing any more dissent among us, I would like to apologize for what I put both you and your mates through. Though I believed at the time that I was doing what was right, I was wrong." Michael met their eyes one at a time, first Gabriel and then Castiel, trying to emit as much sincerity as he could through his words. "Although I cannot say that I regret where I have ended up, I am sorry for the path we took to get here. Please forgive me."

The archangel had never felt more relieved than he did when they both warily nodded their agreement. It was just one step, Michael knew, but it was a step in the right direction.

* * *

Michael trembled with awe in the presence of his Father. It had been so long since he had seen his Father, and all three angels were swept up in the joy of the moment. One by one, they fell to their knees before the Prophet Chuck who was currently being used as the mouthpiece of the Lord.

Things had been going well even before the arrival of God. Michael had made peace with his brothers, and it appeared as though Adam had done the same. The three angels and their mates had been attempting conversation when they had hit upon the question of 'why'. The Winchesters were asking why things were going so well when they all knew for a fact that their family had horrible luck. The angels were asking why they were being allowed to stay on Earth, none of them having been called back to the ranks by any of the other angels as of yet. All of them were asking why they were even alive as over half of them had been dead when the Apocalypse ended, and none of them had answers as to how it was possible.

Chuck had interrupted, stuttering out that he had a message for them before the light took over, pouring from his eyes, nose, and mouth, radiating from his fingertips.

And then, God was there.

"Hello, my children," their Father greeted them. "I know that you have questions, and I will answer for you what you need to know. I have resurrected each of you at least once, and I have guided you toward one another for a reason."

The omniscient eyes turned to Castiel. "Castiel, the youngest of my angels, you have grown considerably since I last saw you. I am very proud of you for all you have accomplished. There is one more lesson that you must learn, my son. You must once again learn how to take joy in life. It is my wish that Dean's influence will make this lesson a bit easier for you to learn."

Castiel looked up at God with wide eyes full of love. "Yes, Father."

God turned to Gabriel. "Gabriel, my son, you need to learn to be loyal to something outside of yourself. Sam has already started you on this path, and it is my wish that having him as your mate will allow you to learn your lesson."

Gabriel opened his mouth to argue, but seemed to think better of it. "Yes, Father."

Then it was Michael's turn. "Michael, you are my oldest, and as such, your ways will be the hardest to change. My son, you think too much of duty, and not enough of yourself. Though that might have been the way when the humans were first brought into the world, it is time for a change. You need a vacation, and so I am ordering you to take one on Earth. Your duties will still be there for you when you get back. Stay with Adam; learn to relax."

Michael was grateful. All he wanted at that moment was to do exactly as God said. Stay with Adam and build a life with him. He would make the human his in every way possible and he would not think (much) of his duties in Heaven. "Yes, Father."

"As for the Winchesters…" God paused. "I have brought you back because I like you. You did not deserve your fates, and I am not a vengeful god. From now on, you will live out your lives in peace."

Michael looked over at his human, pausing to take his mate's hand before moving his gaze to Sam and Dean. Tears filled their eyes as one thought echoed through each of them.

_It's finally over_.

* * *

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the second to last fic in my Mysterious Ways 'Verse. If you did, please let me know. Thank you!


	7. Mysterious Ways

Title: Mysterious Ways

Summary: Stranger things had happened. After all, He did work in mysterious ways.

A/N: I know what you guys are thinking. Two updates back to back? How is it possible? :P Well, for one thing, this chapter is more like an epilogue, and it is much shorter than the rest of the chapters (with the exception of the first one). Also, I had about half of this written before I even started the rest of the series. When I say before, I mean about two and a half years ago, which was way before I started publishing my fanfics on FFN. So yeah, this one was just sitting on my computer ready to be polished up into the final chapter. I hope you all like it. XD

Thank you to my beta, Delu, without whom this fic totally would have been completed anyway, just in a less grammatically correct format. :P

* * *

Pretending to be possessed by Himself was the most fun Chuck had had in years.

He had to admit, even if only to Himself, that He had a flare for the dramatic in Him that was sometimes a bit difficult to overcome. But, then again, He was God so He could be whatever He wanted to be, and what He _wanted_ to be was dramatic. Truthfully, He thought He had matured over the years.

Projecting blinding lights from his eyes _might_ have been overkill. Perhaps he had been _too_ dramatic.

They had needed an explanation though. Otherwise, they would have spent the rest of their lives waiting for the other shoe to drop, and He couldn't have that.

Chuck liked the Winchesters, and after all of the shit He had put them through, He figured they deserved a little good fortune. So, He had pulled Sam, Adam, and Michael out of Hell – without leaving a mark, by the way, since He was sure that His angels wouldn't like seeing someone else's brand on _their_ Winchesters, even if that brand _was_ made by Him – and dragged Gabriel out from wherever he had been hiding after being "killed" by Lucifer. He had sent orders to Heaven stating that Castiel was to be sent out to aid the Winchesters once again in the search for the missing weapons. The Winchesters and their angels were together again, but Chuck would continue to watch closely to make sure the Winchester brothers – idiots that they were – didn't stupidly interfere with their own happiness.

As Chuck sat at His computer typing up the next chapter in the lives of the Winchesters, a rather horrifying yet amusing thought hit Him. Was He really a cruel and capricious God that enjoyed toying with lives for entertainment, as He had told Sam and Dean all those years ago? After all, He did find it rather hilarious that the angel soulmates that He had given the Winchester boys – who had previously been straight as arrows, unless you asked Dean who would note Sam's propensity for "chick flick moments" – were all riding male bodies.

_Damn it!_ Chuck thought, rubbing a hand over His face. _Becky's rubbing off on me_.

His thoughts warmed as His girlfriend's face flashed before His eyes. In all of His many years, Chuck had never met a human quite as… special… as Becky. She somehow managed to be both ridiculously predictable and yet endlessly fascinating to Him. There was just something about her, and as a result, He had fallen in love with her.

Death had once asked Him how it was possible for Him to fall in love with His own creations. Chuck hadn't had an answer at the time, but now He knew. He had stopped meddling in the affairs of humans many millennia ago, and in His absence, they had taken on a life of their own. Humans were no longer His, at least not entirely; they were their own creation.

Chuck had been on Earth for generations now, wanting to experience this world He had created, and knowing that—considering how fast it changed—He would be unable to do so in even a thousand lifetimes. Being Chuck had honestly been His favorite existence so far. He got to be human, He got to keep tabs on Heaven, and He got Becky.

Being with Becky had softened Him. Chuck had never considered Himself a cruel god, for all that it might seem that way to His children. If there was one thing He had learned since He had created them, it was that sometimes children did not know what was in their best interests and needed a firm hand to guide them in the right direction. Since He had met Becky, He had started to think that maybe His humans were more self-sufficient than he gave them credit for. And even if they weren't, Chuck had seen what adherence to rules and duty had done to his first children, the angels. It had led to a rash of rebellion that ended with an Apocalypse and countless dead on both sides.

Chuck shook His head. The entire chain of events could have been averted, and though He could not reverse what had already been done, there were some things He could do to at least help out those who had been most directly affected by the situation.

The Winchester boys were now happy. The world was getting back to its normal state of organized chaos. Chuck was still Chuck, and He was with Becky.

Maybe His books could finally have a happy ending. Stranger things had happened. After all, He did work in mysterious ways.

* * *

A/N: THE END. It's the end! Oh my goodness gracious. I never thought it would happen. Please review to let me know what you think. :)


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